Wydad withstand late pressure to sneak into Champions League semi

• A last minute VAR review turned down CRB’s appeals for a penalty
• Wydad won the first leg 1-0
• They will take on Petro de Luanda in the semis

Moroccan giants Wydad Club Athletic have progressed to the semi-final of the CAF Champions League after withstanding second leg pressure from Algeria’s CR Belouizdad in Casablanca to play to a 0-0 draw and go through 1-0 on aggregate.

Wydad won the first leg 1-0 in Algeria, and were made to sweat to hold off for a barren draw at home, including a last minute penalty call.

The referee had to go to the pitch-side monitor to check whether keeper Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti had fouled Ahmed Ait Abdesslem as they battled for a cross and when he finished his check and whistled for play on, there was relief for Wydad and agony for CRB.

There was so much drama in the final 10 minutes of the game and just before the VAR call, the technology had just led to CRB’s goalkeeper Toufik Moussaoui being sent off for a retaliatory push on the face on Wydad’s Muaid Ellafi.

Initially, the referee had given the keeper a yellow card for the push, but after being convinced by VAR officials to have a second look at the incident, he upgraded the color of the card from yellow to red.

With the Algerians having exhausted their substitutions, skipper Chemseddine Nessakh moved from the left side of defence into goal for the five minutes of added time.

It had been a hugely competitive game over both halves with Belouizdad hugely determined to overturn the result from the first leg. They had a 19^th minute chance when a clearance from the Wydad keeper bounced off Kheiredine Merzougui but defender Amine Farhane recovered well to clear a yard off the line.

In the 21^st minute, Merzougui floated in a corner at the near post met by Chouaib Keddad, but the defender’s flicked header flew inches wide.

In the second half, Wydad who were pushed hard by the visitors in the opening half tried to be more adventurous moving forward.

They had chances with Zouheir El Moutaraji’s shot from distance comfortably saved by the keeper while Aymane El Hassouni’s low effort from distance was also pushed away by the keeper.

But towards the final quarter of an hour, Belouizdad turned the pressure on their hosts and they were denied by the woodwork seven minutes to time when Karim Aribi’s header from the edge of the six yard box off a Mohamed Bakir cross coming off the upright.

The Algerians piled in the pressure, but Wydad held on to remain on course for a third Champions League title.

They will now face off with Angola’s Petro de Luanda, a side they clashed with in the group stages and their last meeting ended in a 5-1 thrashing at their backyard.